Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools Vol.42 395-407 October 2011. doi:10.1044/0161-1461(2011/09-0080)
© American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
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The Use of Sound-Field Amplification Devices in Different Types of Classrooms

Wayne J. Wilsona,,b
Julie Marinaca
Kathryn Pittya
Carolyn Burrowsa
a The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
b The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

Correspondence to Wayne J. Wilson: w.wilson{at}uq.edu.au

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine if sound-field amplification (SFA) devices affected student performance in 3 different types of classrooms.

Method: The classroom performance of 147 children (77 males, 70 females, ages 8;2 [years;months] ± 5 months) was measured at the beginning and end of the second semester of their third year in 1 of 4 primary schools in Brisbane, Australia. Each school contained 2 participating classrooms, 1 with and 1 without an SFA device.

Results: The SFA devices contributed to small but significant improvements in student listening (p < .01) and auditory analysis (p < .05) skills, but only in the school where the participating classrooms were in a brick building (vs. a demountable building) with neighboring classrooms separated by solid walls (vs. open spaces). The classrooms in this school showed the lowest background noise measures (47–50 dB 1 hr, A weighted) and the second lowest reverberation times (0.87–0.91 s) overall, although these values still exceeded the maximums recommended by American National Standards Institute S12.60-2002 (2002).

Conclusion: These results suggest that any potential benefits of SFA devices are more likely to be realized in classrooms with better acoustics.

KEY WORDS: infrared systems, school-age children, classroom acoustics, sound-field amplification


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